NFL Week 1 Roundtable: Who’s the NFC’s Best QB? Who Will Dethrone Chiefs in AFC?

We’ve finally made it to the 2025 NFL season, and here’s what you need to know.

Our national NFL reporters have identified four key storylines to watch this season. We start with an obvious one — will the Chiefs’ AFC domination end in 2025 — and finish with one that will affect some of the league’s biggest-name teams (new head coaches).

Here’s what our team thinks you should expect during the 2025 regular season.

Who Can Derail the Chiefs in the AFC?

Ben Arthur: Baltimore Ravens

I think it’s inevitable that one of Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen will beat Kansas City in the playoffs, but if I had to pick one, I’d roll with Jackson. Though his Ravens fell to the Bills in last season’s playoffs, there’s a reason I like Baltimore.

Both Jackson and Allen are MVP-caliber players, but it’s Jackson who still seems to be making exponential leaps as a quarterback. The two-time MVP has taken massive strides as a dropback passer the past couple of years, registering his first 4,000-yard passing season in 2024. His play in the playoffs has caught up to what he does in the regular season. 

Can Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson take down the Chiefs and represent the AFC in the Super Bowl this season? (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images)

Derrick Henry will be in his second season with the Ravens. Baltimore will get back No. 1 receiver Zay Flowers, who missed the playoffs last season due to injury. The defense also became elite in the second half of last season under coordinator Zach Orr, and that growth should continue in 2025. The Ravens have everything they need to get to the Super Bowl this season.

Greg Auman: Baltimore Ravens

A team that is not the Chiefs will represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. Kansas City has been there five times in six years and won three of them, which is remarkable. Can the Chiefs consistently win very close games as they did in 2024? The odds are against it. The Chiefs will be a playoff team but might not even win their division with Denver and Los Angeles both looking like serious challengers.

The decision for me comes down to Baltimore and Buffalo, teams with arguably two of the top three quarterbacks in the NFL. I just see more from the Ravens defense, especially in the secondary. The AFC North, at least aside from Cleveland, is not an easy division, but Baltimore’s defense should be good enough that the AFC playoffs will go through M&T Bank Stadium. And unlike two years ago against the Chiefs, I think the Ravens will take care of business there. 

This would be a big, validating step for Jackson, whose regular-season production has been overshadowed by not being able to get to the big game. That should change this season.

Henry McKenna: Buffalo Bills

It’s clear the Chiefs are on a run comparable to many of the NFL’s great dynasties, but is it like the Cowboys’ dynasty, which lasted for a half-decade? Or is it like the dynasty of the Patriots, who enjoyed 20 years (and two five-year spans of Super Bowl control)?

The rest of the NFL is catching up to Kansas City — admittedly slowly — and I think Josh Allen and the Bills can (finally) be the team that knocks off Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid. This could be the phase of the Chiefs dynasty when they have to recollect themselves.

Ralph Vacchiano: Baltimore Ravens

I used to pick the New England Patriots to win the Super Bowl every year and colleagues (and probably a few readers) laughed at how unoriginal and boring that was. But for nearly two decades I was either right, or pretty close, more often than not.

The lesson? I’ll believe the Chiefs’ dynasty is over when it’s actually over.

That said, the Chiefs do have something the Patriots rarely had during their dynasty, which is that they have a couple of teams on their heels. And there were some things not to like about the Chiefs last year — all their one-score games and the way they were blown out in the Super Bowl. I think a team like the Ravens, with the NFL’s best quarterback and one of the best running backs, is in a perfect position to beat them this season.

I’m not sure whether that would derail the dynasty. But it could give us all a break.

Eric D. Williams: Los Angeles Chargers

Yes, the Bolts have already lost one of their best players in left tackle Rashawn Slater, who suffered a season-ending tear to his patellar tendon in the preseason. However, they can slide 2024 first-rounder Joe Alt to his more comfortable left tackle position and keep going.

Jim Harbaugh’s teams normally make a leap in his second season, which means that the Chargers should be even better after finishing 11-6 last year. The addition of rookie running back Omarion Hampton should take pressure off Justin Herbert to carry the offense. The Chiefs look vulnerable after an embarrassing Super Bowl loss to the Eagles. 

I think the Chargers will win the AFC West for the first time since 2009.

The Chargers drafted running back Omarion Hampton to help take some pressure off QB Justin Herbert to carry the offense. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)

Who is the best QB in the NFC?

Arthur: Jayden Daniels

Jalen Hurts is a proven big-game quarterback and a Super Bowl champion, so I wouldn’t fault anyone for leaning in his direction. From a pure talent standpoint, though, Daniels — to me — clears Hurts and every other quarterback in the NFC. As a rookie, he showed that he’s elite with his arm, legs and mind. In the biggest moments with games on the line, Daniels displayed the poise of a quarterback who has played in the NFL for a decade.

There will be an adjustment period for him in his second season, of course. Teams now have NFL film on him. We saw C.J. Stroud’s bumpy Year 2 in 2024. But Daniels is more difficult to game plan for than Stroud because of his rushing ability.

Daniels led the Commanders to the NFC title game as a rookie, and I think it’s just the beginning for him.

Auman: Jalen Hurts

As a caveat, if Daniels can continue to improve on a promising rookie season, this honor could be his. For now, Hurts is still the answer — a combined 32 touchdowns passing and rushing with only five interceptions in the 2024 regular season, and even better production in the postseason (10 more touchdowns and only one total turnover). 

How does he improve while trying to defend a Super Bowl championship? It probably starts with more passing — 361 attempts in 15 games last year is a very low number — but the Eagles ran the ball well enough that it’s hard to quibble. And while it’s all Nick Sirianni’s offense, Hurts will be working with his fourth offensive coordinator in four seasons, which doesn’t make sustained excellence any easier.

McKenna: Jalen Hurts

It’s tempting to pick Daniels, who is no doubt ascending. It’s tempting to pick Matthew Stafford, even with his back injury. It’s tempting to pick Jared Goff, with his impressive statistics.

But I like Hurts, who just knocked off Mahomes in the Super Bowl. I get that Hurts has an outstanding supporting cast, but that doesn’t discredit the way he managed games with unparalleled efficiency last year. For the final 15 games, Hurts was the hottest dual-threat QB in the NFL. I doubt that’ll change going into 2025.

Vacchiano: Jalen Hurts

It’s hard to vote against a man who led his team to two Super Bowls in three seasons, including one championship. Yes, it’s true that the Eagles are loaded. Hurts has all the advantages with a powerful running game, the best offensive line in football, a top defense and two great receivers. But it’s ignorant to think Hurts isn’t one of the biggest components to the Eagles’ success.

He has great arm strength, intelligence and an ability to make plays on the run. The Eagles don’t need him to be Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen because they have so many other components, but there’s no reason to think he couldn’t do it, if asked. He’s had some very big games and has carried Philadelphia when needed. The Eagles just don’t need him to do it very often.

But don’t think that any quarterback could be dropped into that super team and it would all work perfectly. Hurts is a perfect fit. And his leadership is off the charts.

Williams: Matthew Stafford

He’s 37 years old and dealing with an injured back, but Stafford has played through pain before and will figure out a way to get on the field each week. When Stafford is healthy, his pairing with offensive genius Sean McVay makes the Los Angeles Rams one of the most dangerous offenses in the league. The additions of Davante Adams on the perimeter and rookie tight end Terrance Ferguson will make it difficult for teams to key on Puka Nacua. And the Rams have one of the more underrated backfield tandems in Kyren Williams and Blake Corum.

But Stafford is the straw that stirs the drink for the Rams. If he can remain upright all season, his ability to make plays in clutch situations and at the end of the year could propel L.A. to another Super Bowl.

Will the running back renaissance continue in 2025?

Auman: Absolutely.

If last year was all about a deep and talented class of quarterbacks making an impact as rookies, that really won’t be the case in 2025, so it opens up a window for the spotlight to focus on the game’s young running backs. Rookies like the Raiders’ Ashton Jeanty, the Chargers’ Omarion Hampton and the Steelers’ Kaleb Johnson could give the NFL a running back winning AP Offensive Rookie of the Year honors for the first time since Saquon Barkley in 2018. Some of the best backs in the league are still under 25: Atlanta’s Bijan Robinson, Detroit’s Jahmyr Gibbs or even Tampa Bay’s Bucky Irving.

We celebrate the NFL’s love of prolific passing, but we’ve lost the old run game along the way. From 2002-2006, the NFL had 25 instances of players rushing for 1,500-plus yards. In the 17 years since, it was just 23 total. I’d take three 1,500-yard seasons, which has only happened once in the past 12 seasons.

McKenna: Why not?

This is the time of year when offensive coordinators tell everyone how much they plan to run the ball. Then, when push comes to shove (and they lose the lead in an actual game), they have their QB chuck the ball. We’ve seen legitimate success with offenses that start with a strong run game and then rely upon an efficient passing attack.

The Eagles’ commitment to not throwing the ball led to their Super Bowl run: After Week 4, Hurts threw the ball fewer than 30 times in 14 of their 15 games (including the postseason). The Chargers did something similar, even with Justin Herbert at the helm. The Seahawks are building their offense in that way this year with Sam Darnold. Teams are copying this run-heavy approach.

So, yes, the Runaissance should continue.

Vacchiano: No.

Look, I’m an admitted running back skeptic. The wear and tear on their bodies is too much to sustain and, for the most part, their shelf life at the top of the charts is usually short-lived. I am firmly on the side of teams that don’t want to invest big money in the position. And those that have, I think, will want to protect their investment a little better than they did last year.

So, while I think Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry will probably still have big seasons, I’d bet their numbers will be less impressive. After a year that saw seven running backs top 1,200 yards and 13 score double-digit touchdowns, I’m confident that regression is coming. Injuries are almost certainly coming, as well.

Williams: Yes.

I’ll let San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh answer for me: “I do think these coordinators are starting to get back to running the football and establishing that to get people from playing those two-shells. So, it does seem to be the evolution as it’s going back to the run game.”

Running the football was the answer to defenses playing more light boxes the past few years, and that will continue into this season. The top six rushing offenses last season all made the playoffs, with Barkley leading Philadelphia to a championship. Expect more teams to follow suit in 2025.

Which new head coach will make the biggest impact on his team this season?

Auman: Pete Carroll, Raiders

Is it possible that none of the seven first-year head coaches make the playoffs this season? The only one who inherited a team with more than five wins was Dallas and Brian Schottenheimer, and the Cowboys just traded Micah Parsons. The easy answer is Chicago’s Ben Johnson, but I’ll pick Carroll, although they’re both in extremely difficult divisions. Carroll’s Raiders play the AFC South this season (could go 3-1 there) as well as four of his fellow first-year coaches, so he has some things going for him. If any of the first-year coaches gets to nine wins, it should be celebrated. Carroll has a shot.

McKenna: Brian Schottenheimer, Cowboys

I’m picking Schottenheimer, because … *sighs dramatically* … he’s just not going to be very good. The Dallas passing offense should basically run itself, with the star-studded cast of Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens. But Schottenheimer appears to be Jerry Jones’ puppet, and if there’s one thing the recent Netflix docuseries showed me, it’s that the Cowboys were at their best when a strong-willed, brilliant coach (Jimmy Johnson) stood up for himself against Jones. That’s not Schottenheimer. 

With another one of Jones’ guys running the show, the Cowboys won’t make a legit Super Bowl run, even if they have a roster that has plenty of elite talent at premium positions.

Brian Schottenheimer has navigated through an eventful training camp in his first year as Cowboys head coach. (Sam Hodde/Getty Images)

Vacchiano: Mike Vrabel, Patriots

This one is easy. Vrabel is one of only two experienced head coaches to get a new job in the last cycle. While Pete Carroll has a better résumé, Vrabel inherits the more promising team. Most notably, he has a potential franchise quarterback who is only going to get better playing for a competent staff. 

Vrabel is a strong leader, too, known for getting the most out of players. The young guys in New England will believe in him immediately. He won’t win a Super Bowl as Patriots coach right away, because there are a lot of things to fix there, but you can bet on his team doing what it didn’t do last year — play competent, competitive football. And the Patriots will surprise a few people along the way.

Williams: Pete Carroll, Raiders

Yes, Carroll turns 74 in September, but he still has the energy of a teenager and is just what Las Vegas needed to change the culture of the organization. 

The Raiders do not have enough talent on the roster to compete with heavy hitters like Kansas City. However, frontline players Maxx Crosby, Brock Bowers, Geno Smith and Ashton Jeanty will help Carroll make things interesting within the division, and it’s not out of the realm of possibility for the Raiders to hover around the .500 mark. More importantly, they should be entertaining and fun to watch this season, and that’s because of the return of Carroll to the sidelines.

The following writers contributed to this story: Ben Arthur (@benyarthur); Greg Auman (@gregauman); Henry McKenna (@McKennAnalysis); Ralph Vacchiano (@RalphVacchiano); Eric D. Williams (@eric_d_williams).

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